Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) since 1984 and a member of President Donald Trump’s White House coronavirus task force, said in an interview on Wednesday that he’d be happy to continue on as an adviser to President-elect Joe Biden if he was asked to do so.
Fauci, who was being interviewed on C-SPAN about the matter, was asked if he’d serve on a similar coronavirus task force set up by Biden, once he assumes office in January.
“Of course, yes. The answer is absolutely,” the infectious diseases expert said.
Fauci added that he has been in contact with Biden’s chief of staff Ron Klain. The two, however, have not discussed the “nuts and bolts” of what the next president’s plans would be regarding a response to the pandemic when he occupies the White House.
Fauci applauded the decision by the Trump administration this week to finally allow the transition process to begin to allow for Biden’s entrance into office.
“Obviously, soon, we will be getting the transition team and the task force to give them the information that would make their assuming the responsibilities easier and more efficient,” Fauci said.
Trump’s long refusal to acknowledge the outcome of the presidential race, and to allow the transition process to begin, had kept Biden’s team from being involved in discussions regarding a number of important issues, including how the eventual rollout of a vaccine for coronavirus was being planned. In an interview last week, Fauci explained that it was imperative for the Trump administration to share that info with Biden.
“I’ve been through five transitions; I can say that transitions are extremely important to the smooth continuity of whatever you’re doing,” Fauci said at the time.
Fauci’s inclusion in the Biden White House would likely be welcomed by most Americans, as the NIAID director is widely regarded as trustworthy.
In a recent Politico/Morning Consult poll, 62 percent of Americans rated Fauci’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic response as “excellent” or “good.” Another 17 percent said it was “fair,” while only 13 percent described Fauci’s work on the virus as “poor.”
The president, however, didn’t fare as well as Fauci in people’s views on his handling of the response to the pandemic. Only 38 percent of Americans described Trump’s leadership on COVID-19 as “excellent” or “good,” with 49 percent saying his performance was “poor.” Ten percent described his job on coronavirus as “fair.”
The poll also found that a majority in the U.S. believe Biden will do a better job overall in dealing with the crisis. Fifty-five percent of Americans said that Biden will handle the pandemic better than Trump will, while only 33 percent said Trump would do a better job.
We’re not backing down in the face of Trump’s threats.
As Donald Trump is inaugurated a second time, independent media organizations are faced with urgent mandates: Tell the truth more loudly than ever before. Do that work even as our standard modes of distribution (such as social media platforms) are being manipulated and curtailed by forces of fascist repression and ruthless capitalism. Do that work even as journalism and journalists face targeted attacks, including from the government itself. And do that work in community, never forgetting that we’re not shouting into a faceless void – we’re reaching out to real people amid a life-threatening political climate.
Our task is formidable, and it requires us to ground ourselves in our principles, remind ourselves of our utility, dig in and commit.
As a dizzying number of corporate news organizations – either through need or greed – rush to implement new ways to further monetize their content, and others acquiesce to Trump’s wishes, now is a time for movement media-makers to double down on community-first models.
At Truthout, we are reaffirming our commitments on this front: We won’t run ads or have a paywall because we believe that everyone should have access to information, and that access should exist without barriers and free of distractions from craven corporate interests. We recognize the implications for democracy when information-seekers click a link only to find the article trapped behind a paywall or buried on a page with dozens of invasive ads. The laws of capitalism dictate an unending increase in monetization, and much of the media simply follows those laws. Truthout and many of our peers are dedicating ourselves to following other paths – a commitment which feels vital in a moment when corporations are evermore overtly embedded in government.
Over 80 percent of Truthout‘s funding comes from small individual donations from our community of readers, and the remaining 20 percent comes from a handful of social justice-oriented foundations. Over a third of our total budget is supported by recurring monthly donors, many of whom give because they want to help us keep Truthout barrier-free for everyone.
You can help by giving today. Whether you can make a small monthly donation or a larger gift, Truthout only works with your support.